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Jackson
The ruins of Jackson, Tennessee provide shelter to a few hundreds of settlers and serves as the headquarter of a small group of merchants and technicians who protect and take care of the railway road which was repaired after the Great War. It is a major resting stop for passing travelers and an important stop on the railroad that passes through the city. One of the most recognizable features of the village are the husks of the train wagons used as homes after the war that destroyed them beyond repair. History Pre-War Jackson was the seat of Tennessee's Madison County and was the county's largest city. Originally named Alexandria, founded in 1820 along the Forked Deer River, the city was renamed in 1822 to honor General Andrew Jackson, later President of the United States. Before the development of Memphis, Jackson was the most important city in Western Tennessee. Jackson developed rapidly just prior to the Civil War as a railroad junction and maintenance shop for several early railroads. After the invention of the automobile and later on its nuclear powered counterpart, the city became less important as a railway station in the mid 2000's. By the time of 2077, Jackson had shrunk significantly and became a less important target for nuclear missiles. The War Jackson and it's railroads where damaged by impacts in the surrounding region, but where spared of any direct hits. Most citizens of Jackson had fled from the city and where killed by the bombing and radiation, whilst several bloody riots ravaged the city in the first 2 weeks after the War, after which everyone had died from starvation, thirst or radiation poisoning. Post-War The city was left abandoned for almost 2 centuries and was only used as an occasional resting stop for survivors or as a hideout for small gangs of raiders. In 2245, a bunch of slavers used it as a camp where they ambushed travelers and sold them into slavery. But in that year a group of wastelanders united themselves against the marauding slavers and, after a series of tense battles, managed to chase them away for good. The leader of the victorious group was Hugh Welder. Content with their victory, he and his group chose to clean up a part of Jackson and establish a camp from where they could fight against other slaver groups in the region. The old Greyhound Railway Station became the group's primary base and resort. In 2253, a citizen named Wallace Merrit organized some of his friends to try to repair the old railroad and some of the train wagons that were still in decent shape. At first, they were considered to be a bunch of buffoons mingling with things they knew nothing about, but when they got the first train up and running in 2256, they where considered geniuses. Wallace and his friends soon made a short trip on the train, which used coal as fuel, and they came back successfully. This event changed the settlement in Jackson drastically. The closed, isolated settlement soon changed into an open-minded community. The next 3 years, Merrit and his group of technicians were busy walking along the railroads around Jackson and repairing or replacing everything that could be repaired or replaced if it was damaged in the Great War or rusted beyond repair in the centuries that followed it. When more train wagons where fixed and the network of railroads was constantly improved, Hugh Welder, still the leader of Jackson's inhabitants, created a group which he named the Railway Rovers, hoping that the rhyme would make the name more memorable and more appealing for possible new members, and the name 'Rover' would make it clear that anyone was free to join. The Rovers soon had full claim over everything that was transported across the network of railroads, especially in the Jackson area, and established several smaller settlements which served to resupply the passing trains and their crew. When the Price Foundation first arrived in 2260, the Rovers sold them 2 of the smaller trains, which were modified and painted to fit the Foundation's wishes and were then used by them to supply their own work camps and farms much faster than they had ever could by cart and Brahmin. Merrit and his crew, in 2281, are still busy with repairing and maintaining the important tracks and say that they will have the entire Tennessee Midland Railway Company line, from Jackson to New Memphis, open for business by the beginning of the 24th century. Layout In the Post-War world, Jackson is roughly located 70 miles east from New Memphis, the New Memphis Zoo and The Rock, and 47 miles east from Covington. Interstate 40 goes through the city in an east-west direction, going from New Memphis in the west and Nashville in the east. Interstate 40 has seven exits in the city. U.S Route 45 runs north to south to Gibson County and Chester County. U.S. Route 412 runs east from Lexington in Henderson County, northwest to Dyersburg, Tennessee and I-55 goes to St.-Louis. Relations Mikado: People of the Mikado Railroad Company travel to Jackson to worship at the family home of Casey Jones, the folklore hero they worship. The route to Memphis is being constructed in cooperation with the Railroad Nomads of that nation as an alternative to the lengthy overland route around to Chicago New Memphis: Jackson has been able to establish good relations with New Memphis, and caravans from the city frequently travel to Jackson to sell their wares. Ever since the Militia noticed the importance of this rest-stop along I-40, a small squad of soldiers has been stationed in the remains of Union University to recruit new men and protect the region. Category:Places Category:Communities